


Knotted at the Neck

by TheBardsCipher



Series: Oops, It's a Series Now... [3]
Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: Beakley is probably out of character...oops, Blood, I still don't know how to write a scottish accent and at this point I'm too scared to ask, Lena bonding with everyone, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, This fanfic got out of hand, but its not graphic or anything it's just mentioned, musical theater, references to Ducktales 1987 and Waitress and maybe a couple other things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-03 20:06:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16332605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBardsCipher/pseuds/TheBardsCipher
Summary: Lena, back from being Webby's shadow, tries to get used to life living with the family.





	Knotted at the Neck

Lena had chosen the room next to Webby's for multiple reasons. For starters, it was a very little way to go for sleepovers. Lena could sneak over to Webby's room whenever she pleased. When she was bored she could gently tap a pattern on the wall and Webby would respond. Having a room next to Webby's was the best. The only downside were nightmares, Webby could hear whenever Lena screamed from one and unfortunately they were common.

Tonight had been one of those nights. There was a gentle knock on the door and Webby spoke up from the other side of the door. “Lena?” Webby asked. Her voice sounded worried and it made Lena feel guilty.

Lena ran her hand through her bangs as she responded. “I'm awake, the doors unlocked...” she said.

Webby carefully crept in. She shut the door behind her and walked over to the bed. She grabbed one of the posts so she wouldn't tip over in her half-awake state. “I heard you scream. Was it another nightmare or a spider?” She whispered. She rubbed at her eyes, still droopy from being woken up.

Lena sighed. “A nightmare, if it was a spider I'd be out of bed smashing it...” She offered Webby a smile. She scooted over and patted the bed. “Get in here before you fall,” she said.

Webby nodded her head and climbed up on the bed. She flopped down besides Lena, who was already starting to lift the blanket up so that she could pull it over Webby also. “Was it bad? Do you wanna talk about it?”

Lena shook her head. “Nah, I'm good. Let's just get back to sleep okay.” She laid down besides Webby and rolled over so she could face her.

“You sure?” Webby asked.

“Yep, wasn't that interesting anyways, trust me.”

Webby draped her arm over Lena. “I'm here if you do wanna talk...” she mumbled.

Lena laughed softly. “I know, go to sleep...”

“You too. Night...”

Lena rolled her eyes as Webby closed hers. “Night silly duckling...” Webby responded with a small huff that could have been interpreted as a tired laugh. Lena couldn't help the smile that slipped. She took a deep breath and decided to try sleeping again.

_They were back at the Money Bin. Magica was there in her physical form and laying in front of her was an injured Webby. Lena felt her pulse quicken. This wasn't right! Lena had to help in anyway that she could._

_“LEAVE HER ALONE!” Lena shouted. However, when Magica turned to her, her blood turned cold._

_Magica was walking quickly towards her, a furious look across her face. Her staff was glowing painfully bright purple. “What did you say you little whelp?” He voice was dripping with disgust._

_Lena took a step back. “I-I...” she stuttered._

_Magica was looming over her. “Did I hear you telling me orders?” She flicked her wrist. The area around them shifted to the amphitheater. “You are nothing but the SHADE and you are NOTHING at all without me!” She swung her staff and hit Lena in the side with it. “Sometimes I wonder if I was right to give you life, you little imp!”_

_Lena felt a searing pain erupt in her side. She tried to cry out in pain but she choked. She felt tears run down her face._

_“LENA!”_

“Lena! Wake up!”

Lena woke up to Webby shaking her. “Mmm? What?” She muttered.

Webby sighed when Lena spoke. “Another nightmare?”

Lena blushed and ducked her head into her pillow. “Sorry...I didn't kick you did I?”

Webby shook her head. “Nah, just started making choking sounds and whimpering.”

Lena groaned. She pulled her other pillow over her head. “Awful...” she grumbled.

Webby lifted the pillow over Lena's head and peeked into Lena's make-shift hiding spot. “That's two in one night. You want to go watch a movie or some infomercials and laugh at all the epic fails?”

Lena tilted her head to look at Webby. “You know me so well,” she said. She sat up, causing the pillow Webby had a hold of to fall and the blankets to pool around her. She grabbed her blanket and her phone and followed Webby.

Webby stopped by the chest at the foot of the bed and dug out another one of Lena's blankets. They then headed out of the room and snuck down the hall to the tv room. They turned the volume down low and then curled up on the couch to watch infomercials.

After one and half infomercials, Webby glanced over at Lena. “You wanna talk about it? I promise it helps,” she said.

Lena sighed from the corner she had curled herself in. “I guess? Promise you won't tell Scrooge or your grandma or Donald? Heck don't even tell the boys, they're almost as protective over me as they are with you or themselves...”

Webby smiled. “I promise,” she said.

Lena looked to the side and tried to hide her face so Webby would only have to go by her voice for any hint of emotions. “She was back and we were at the money bin. Might have been a what-if of the whole thing, I'm not sure. She had hurt you and I got mad. I yelled at her and she...she was so furious! She told me that I was nothing without her and that she thought it was a mistake that she created me...”

Webby quickly hugged her. “If she comes back in your nightmare tell her that you're something and that you have found a family that really does care about you,” she said.

Lena laughed softly and wrapped her arms around Webby. “Easier said than done, but I'll try, just for you...” she said.

Webby yawned.

“You can go back to bed you know...” Lena said.

Webby shook her head. “No! Must stay up for you...” she muttered.

Lena smiled and shook her head as she tried sitting back up a little bit better. “Alright, but I'm not carrying you to your bed if you fall asleep here...”

“I'm okay with that...” Webby muttered as she played with the tassels on the blanket she had pulled out.

They went back to watching the infomercial that was on and giggled together as the lady on the tv tripped over nothing and the pitcher of orange juice flew into the air. After another infomercial Webby was out like a light and Lena was scrolling through her phone.

Later that morning Mrs. Beakley found them both out on the couch fast asleep. She carefully took Lena's phone out of her hand and placed it on the side table. She decided that breakfast would be pancakes that day.

~

Lena was curled up on the couch tapping away on her phone when her bracelet glowed softly. She looked up to see Webby running excitedly into the room. She scooted over as Webby tossed herself onto the couch. “'Sup?”

Webby looked up at Lena. “Do you wanna go to the greenhouse with me and Granny? I wanted to try these things called terrariums...I saw them in a book and they looked cool. I figured I'd ask because I remember seeing some plants down in your old hideout...”

Lena smiled. “Sure, just let me grab my headphones, no way am I listening to your grandmother's old timey music...or Launchad's whatever it is he listens to...”

Soon Lena, Webby, and Mrs. Beakley walked into the local greenhouse. “Alright girls, I'll go ask about plants for what Webby wants to do. Do not go too far, if you can't see me, I probably can't see you...”

Webby nodded her head. “Yes Granny! Come on Lena, let's go look at flowers!” She grabbed Lena's wrist and ran off in the direction of the first flowers she spotted.

Lena motioned that she heard and understood Mrs. Beakley's instructions as Webby pulled her away. She then turned her attention to Webby. “I do best with succulents, but sure we could look at flowers...” she said.

Webby smiled. “What's your favorite flower!” She asked excited. She pointed towards some lavenders. “I really like Lavender, they're really pretty and they smell really good. Did you know they can help with sleep? Granny liked to make me Lavender tea when I can't sleep...” she said.

Lena nodded her head. “Uh, I think my favorite flower is the Forget-Me-Not? Either that or the Bleeding Heart?” She shrugged. “I grow herbs and succulents best though...”

Webby smiled. “Forget-Me-Nots are so cute! I don't think I've ever seen a Bleeding Heart though...”

Lena smiled. “They grow in kinda a bush style and on these long stems you'll find rows of flowers. They look like hearts but at the bottom they curl to show the inside and the inside goes to this point that makes it look like it's got like a drop of water or...blood...that's about to fall. They look pretty cool,” she said as she tried to trace the shape in the air.

Webby nodded and looked around. “Maybe we could find some! Maybe that's what you could grow!”

Lena shrugged. “Eh, I don't think Scrooge would like us digging up some of his yard to plant a bush. I think I might go with this French Lavender and go look at the succulents and herbs...”

Mrs. Beakley walked back over to them. “Alright, Webby, succulents and plants that like misting work best in terrariums. Lena, have you decided on anything?”

Lena pointed at one of the French Lavender plants. “I was thinking this, but I was also planning on looking at the succulents and the herbs...”

Mrs. Beakley motioned to the cart she had. “Alright, grab one...” she said.

Lena looked up at her. “'You mean it?”

“Well, we are here to buy plants,” Mrs. Beakley said.

Lena blushed slightly. “Right, uh, okay...” she said. She turned to pick up one of the plants and carefully placed it in the cart. “Alright, onto the succulents...” she said.

Webby ran ahead and Lena ran after her. They stopped and looked around at the succulents. “Oh! Look! A Cactus!”

Lena nodded. “They're pretty cool! I had one for a short while, but I couldn't figure out how to travel with it...”

Webby looked up at her with wide eyes. “You had a cactus! What kind of flower did it have?”

Lena thought for a second. “Yellow, I almost dyed my bangs the same shade once, but when I compared the color I didn't really think it fit my look...”

Webby giggled softly. “You almost dyed your hair yellow?”

Lena nodded and hummed in conformation. “Yep, dyed it hot pink instead...”

“It's light pink now...” Webby said.

“Yeah, decided that since it was fading that I might as well dye it light pink,” she said. She looked around and smiled as she lifted up a small succulent. “Sweet, Aloe Vera! Think your grandmother will let me get this?”

Webby looked over. “Oh! Those are good for burns, wounds, and sore muscles!”

Lena nodded her head. “A must have for any reckless kid.”

“Well, that is us!” Webby said with a laugh. She looked around. “I'm not sure if I really want any of these in my terrarium...” She said.

“'Well, why don't we go look at the mist plants?” Lena asked.

The two started looking around. Webby was absolutely thrilled to find a whole section just for terrariums, and found her grandmother there already. “Granny! Look! Lena found Aloe Vera!”

Mrs. Beakley looked up. “Oh! Did you want to get that too?”

Lena rocked on her feet. “If it's not too much of a problem?”

Mrs. Beakley shrugged. “As long as you can take care of it, I don't mind. Probably don't want to get too much in case Mr. McDuck finds out that your entire room is plants but that one and one more wouldn't hurt. It helps teach your kids responsibility.”

Lena smirked. “Knew you'd find a lesson to teach us...” However, she placed the Aloe Vera in the cart next to the Lavender.

“Cool! This plant is called a friendship plant! I think I want that! Oh! This Mini Ivy would work well with it! Oh! Oh! And some moss! Can I get this mini figurine of a dragon!” Webby called out. She was bouncing as she pointed to a small purple dragon figurine that looked like it would fit in one of the many terrariums on display.

Mrs. Beakley smiled as she walked over. “Calm down Webby. Some of those might be glass,” she said.

Lena followed after and tried not to laugh as Webby's excitement infected her. “Hey, look at that Terrarium, it's shaped like a diamond.” Lena pointed towards a terrarium on the upper shelf.

Webby beamed. “Can I get that one!”

Mrs. Beakley checked the price on it. “Alright, but you have to be careful and make sure to mist it often...”

Webby nodded her head. “Okay Granny!”

Lena rocked on her feet. “Can I go check the herbs?” She asked.

Mrs. Beakley nodded her head. “Go ahead, meet us at the front when you're ready.”

Lena hurried over to the herbs and was quickly looking them over. She liked the scents of many of the herbs and they often helped her relax. She wasn't sure where she had picked that up.

“Did you know that a knight's love would embroider thyme into the knight's cloak to bring him courage?!” Webby said as she popped up next to Lena.

Lena jumped and then glanced over at Webby. “They would?” She asked.

Webby nodded her head. “Yeah! Apparently Thyme was said to bring courage and help boost confidence!”

Lena looked over at the Thyme Webby was looking at. “Thyme it is then!” She said as she picked it up. She headed over to Mrs. Beakley with Webby right on her tail.

Mrs. Beakley bought everything for the girls, along with some pots for Lena's plants, and a thing of dirt.

As soon as they got back to the Manor, they sat outside and got everything planted. The boys had even come to sit around and chat. Dewey wondered if he could convince Donald to take him out to buy stuff for a terrarium.

Later that week Lena was watering her Lavender, which she had placed on her nightstand next to the lava lamp and directly in the window. There was a small knock on the door.

“Lena! Dewey didn't realize the stove was on and burnt his hand, can we have a small piece of your Aloe Vera?” Webby asked as she peeked in.

Lena smirked. “Yeah, come on in!” She crossed over to the table in the corner of her room. She handed a small piece of Aloe Vera over to Dewey. “Here you go,” she said.

Dewey nodded his head. “Thanks!”

Lena was confused by the warmth in her chest. “Whatever, just be glad I didn't make you pay.”

~

Lena had smirked when the boys thought that they'd get away with just a simple game of dart guns. She wasn't surprised when Webby went all out, heck she wasn't even surprised when Dewey followed along.

What did surprise her was the sound of something crashing to the floor.

Lena dropped the dart gun she was using and quickly turned. She looked at where Webby and Dewey had been standing off. Laying on the floor was what was previously a vase but was now shattered pieces of glass.

Webby lowered her dart gun. “This...isn't good...” she muttered.

Huey and Louie came running down the hall. “Guys! What happened?” Huey called out.

“Webby and I got too into the game and I accidentally shot the vase!” Dewey said. He kicked the ground in front of him. “I've really gotta practice my aim...”

Webby went to move forward to cheer him up, but was stopped when Mrs. Beakley's stern voice came from right behind Lena.

“Do not take another step forward!”

Lena tensed up and her pulse quickened. There was no escaping now.

“It's my fault Mrs. Beakley! Don't get mad at Webby!” Dewey said.

“I don't care who's fault it is right now! I don't want any one of you to move towards that vase! Who knows how many pieces of glass that broke into! Everyone away from the glass now!” Mrs. Beakley said. She moved forward as Dewey ran over to his brothers and Webby ran over to Lena.

Webby offered Lena a smile. “Hey, are you okay?” She asked.

Lena offered a nervous smile. “Y-Yeah...no problem...” she muttered. She then looked over at Mrs. Beakley and the pile of glass. She let out a sigh and walked over. “Here, let me help...” she muttered softly as she crouched down and started picking up some of the bigger pieces of glass.

“Lena, go back to Webby...” Mrs. Beakley said.

“It's a lot of glass, it'll take forever if just you picked it up.”

“You could get hurt...”

Lena shrugged. “Wouldn't be the first time. Is there a trash nearby we could put these in?” She asked.

“I'll go get it!” Dewey called out before he ran off towards the kitchen, his brothers following after him. Soon they arrived back with the trash can and Dewey carefully scooted it over, bringing it a couple inches from the edge of the mess.

“Thank you, Webby go find the broom and dust pan,” Mrs. Beakley said.

“Will do!” Webby then ran off herself, and then came back within a minute and set the broom behind Lena.

Soon after all of the pieces of glass were cleaned up and in the trash. All the kids stood in front of Mrs. Beakley. “Alright? What happened?” Mrs. Beakley asked, her arms folded in front of her.

“We were playing with the dart guns...” Huey said.

“It...kinda got out of hand...” Webby admitted.

Lena was silently panicking. Why were they telling the truth? Weren't dart guns banned from inside? She could have sworn she remembered that from the list of rules. They were going to get so grounded for this.

“Webby and Lena teamed up so we teamed up too. We had Huey as scout, Dewey was our front man, and I was guarding our flag! We had the walkie-talkies out so if Huey spotted a suspicious area of where the flag could be then we would send Dewey out to check it!” Louie explained.

“Well....I kinda got close but Webby and Lena were ready for me. Webby sent Lena off to go guard the flag and we got in a stand off and I kinda...missed my aim. It's my fault Mrs. Beakley...” Dewey said.

“No wonder they had the upper hand. They had the walkie-talkies...” Webby muttered.

“Webby...” Mrs. Beakley warned.

“Sorry...”

Mrs. Beakley turned to Lena. “And you?”

Lena flinched. “I-I...I was here yes...but-” She was cut off by Webby.

“Like Dewey said, I had sent her off to go guard the flag! She was just about to turn the corner when the vase crashed to the ground. She, like Huey and Louie, had nothing to do with it,” Webby said.

Lena glanced over at her with wide, surprised eyes. Was Webby really taking the blame? She opened her mouth to object but before she could get a word out, Mrs. Beakley sighed and spoke.

“No dart guns for a month, understood? Also, you're all grounded to your rooms for an hour. Hopefully that'll be enough time for you guys to think about why the rules are there...” Mrs. Beakley said.

“Yes Mrs. Beakley,” the boys said as they headed to their room.

“Alright Granny,” Webby said. She gently took Lena's hand and led her towards their bedrooms.

Mrs. Beakley cleared her throat. “Lena?”

Lena nervously looked over towards Mrs. Beakley. “Yeah?” She nearly squeaked.

Mrs. Beakley offered a soft smile. “Thank you for helping pick up the glass and don't worry, the vase was from a cheap store anyways. It wasn't anything of too much importance.”

Lena stopped where she stood. “It wasn't?”

Mrs. Beakley smiled. “After the first dart gun game, he switched all his nice vase out with cheap ones. You kids being grounded is mainly so you guys can think over why the rules are important. Anyone of you could have been hurt on that glass...”

Lena visibly relaxed. “Okay...yeah...I'll definitely think about the rules...” she muttered.

Webby gently pulled on Lena's arm. When Mrs. Beakley waved them off both of the girls ran down the hall to their rooms.

The hour didn't even feel that long. Lena had written a poem in her journal. After writing in her journal, she checked her plants, and laid on her bed to slowly relax. Before she knew it there was a knock on the door.

“Your hour is up, you can come out...” Mrs. Beakley said. She then walked away. Lena could hear her knocking on Webby's door.

Lena rolled over and got off her bed. The second she left her room, Webby tackled her in a hug. “We should go play tag outside!”

“Oh dear...safe tag?”

“Yeah, I think we've had enough thrill for the day!”

Lena raised an eyebrow. “Enough thrill? In this family?”

Webby beamed at her. “You're right! Let's go grab the boys and play outside! Maybe we can find some treasure!”

Lena ran after her. There was no such thing as a calm moment in this family.

~

Lena soon learned that even the safe version of games could be intense. Hide-N-Seek simply because they lived in a mansion and Webby knew all of the hiding spots. Which was good when she was hiding but bad when she was the seeker...like right now.

Webby had asked Lena if she wanted to be seeker with her, but Lena had said that she'd be fine, she'd just team up with one of the boys.

The only triplet that stayed behind while Webby was talking to Lena was Huey.

The two walked around in silence as Webby called out numbers. The rule was to count to two hundred, after all it was a large building. Lena knew she and Huey didn't have the best of relationships, especially in the past. He made her feel stupid and she hated that and she had been rude to him and his brothers. Sure, they'd been getting along a lot better recently, but she couldn't tell if it was because they actually cared or if it was just due to being Webby's friends and living under the same roof.

“How about the garage?” Lena asked as they walked by the door.

“First place she'd look. Besides Dewey's probably already hidden in there...” Huey replied. He had a flash light in his hand.

Lena nodded her head. “She's pretty close to 200...” Lena pointed out.

Huey nodded. “To the left,” he whispered. They turned to the left as they reached the end of the current hall. They then dashed up a set of stairs and Huey motioned to a door. If Lena remembered correctly it led to a sort of study or library.

Lena opened the door. The room was pitch black. She heard a click behind her and suddenly a light appeared and her shadow grew bigger.

She could have sworn she saw red eyes on it.

She let out a scream and dropped to the floor, her arms coming up to her head. Her pulse was quick and her breathing was getting quicker. She couldn't be here...she couldn't. She felt something heavy against her shoulders and neck. She felt a burning against her chest....or was it in her chest. She couldn't tell and that made her panic worse. She closed her eyes as she thought she saw the world tip and swim around her.

“Lena!” She thought she heard someone call her name. She knew she recognized the voice, she just wasn't used to it sounding so concerned about her. She knew he could get concerned, but mostly to his brothers.

Huey was the oldest sibling after all.

Lena carefully opened her eyes. She tried focusing on him, but it was difficult for some reason and she didn't like it.

“Good, good, you're responding...” Huey said. He looked around, which cause Lena to look around.

They were still in the middle of the hallway, the door was shut, and the light that had brought HER back was gone. That meant she was still out there and Lena could feel her breathing quicken again.

“Hey, keep looking at me...just focus on me. Okay...” Huey said calmly, gently setting his hand on her knee.

Lena quickly looked back at him. She let out a small whine sound.

Huey nodded his head. “Just listen to me okay? Can you nod to let me know you're listening?”

Lena hesitated but after a second she nodded her head. Her arms moved away from her head.

Huey offered her a small smile. “Okay...just focus on me and your breathing. Now just breath in, two three four. Hold, two, three, four. Out, two, three, four. And hold, two, three four. In, two, three, four. Hold...” he continued counting.

Lena focused on him and tried to focus on him and his counting. Slowly she was able to match his counting with her breathing. Her panic was subsiding and she was becoming tired. After a few more rounds of counting she rubbed at her eyes. “Why am I so tired?” She muttered.

Huey tilted his head. “I think because you just had a panic attack. You want to lie down? I'd suggest moving and get you to a calmer area but I'm not sure if you're able to move right now. You still look kinda shaky...”

Lena hummed and laid down on her back. She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, but she didn't get far before she could hear the sound of stampeding feet running down the hall.

“LENA!” Webby called out.

“Lower your voice,” Huey said as Webby, Dewey, and Louie rounded the corner.

“What happened? I heard Lena scream and then my bracelet started glowing...” Webby whispered as she walked over and knelt down next to Lena.

“I'm fine...” Lena muttered.

Huey glanced over at Lena, then at his brothers, and then back to Webby. “I'll tell you later. Maybe we should stop playing...”

“No, don't do that. We can start playing again in a little bit, just let the world stop spinning around me for a second...” Lena said. She waved a hand up in the air.

“Seriously are you alright?” Dewey asked.

“Yeah, just got spooked by my own shadow...” Lena said with a shrug.

“Oh...” Louie said as he placed the pieces together. “Are you sure? We can stop playing and we could help you back to your room and you could take a nap...”

“I don't want to ruin the fun...”

“You wouldn't be ruining the fun,” Dewey said.

“Look, just wait a minute and I'll be ready to tackle you all...except for maybe Webby...” Lena said. She took a couple more deep breaths and then opened her eyes and sat up. She carefully got back up to her feet, keeping hold of Webby.

“Well, I found Louie first so he's counting!” Webby said.

Lena smiled. “Was it the TV, pantry, or kitchen this time?”

Louie scoffed. “I'll have you know it was the dining room.”

“He had already been to the kitchen, he had a ham sandwich on a plate....” Webby stated.

Lena laughed. “Awesome. Well you better start counting!” She ran off along side Webby.

~

Lena was sitting in her usual corner of the couch of the Television room when she felt someone plop right down on the opposite side. She peeked up from her phone and saw Louie sitting there. He picked up the remote and looked over at her. “'Sup?” She said.

Louie nodded in response. “You weren't watching were you?” He asked.

Lena looked over and shrugged. “Nah, the show I started ended a little bit ago, I've been watching videos online since. Just didn't find a reason to get up when I was comfy...”

“Understandable. Will it be alright if I change the channel?” Louie motioned to the TV with his head.

“Go for it...” She watched as Louie changed the channel.

“Jackpot! Ottoman Empire is on!” Louie cheered as he chose the channel.

Lena snorted. “What was that title again?” She asked.

“Ottoman Empire? They make ottomans for rich people. It fun because I like the chaos, Huey likes to watch it for the designs, and I think Dewey is interested because they show how they make it...” he explained.

“Okay, but you do realize the title is a nerdy pun right?” Lena said. She set her phone down and shifted before she sank into the couch. “Like, you know, in history you learn about the Ottoman Empire? It's in like Turkey and from nearly 1300 to the early 1920's?”

Louie whined. “No....don't go nerdy on me...”

Lena laughed and grabbed her phone again. “Alright, whatever...”

They sat there in silence as the episode continued. Apparently the two guys on the show, Lena never caught their names, were making an ottoman for some person who wanted the ottoman to be the exact shade of ruby red as their chair, but also wanted it to have shades of dark blue to go with their curtains. Lena couldn't figure out what was going on the other half of the show but Louie seemed to be enjoying it.

“If I was to get an ottoman I'd want one with a flowery and leafy pattern,” Lena said.

Louie looked up. “Oh, that'd look cool! I want one with dollar signs all over it...” he said.

“Of course you do...” Lena said.

Louie sat up straighter and looked over at her. “Hey, do you have any better idea?”

Lena thought for a second. “For you? A nice forest green cushion with the legs made out of pure gold. On the sides of the base in the center of the long sides would be dollar signs pressed in as if the gold was wax.”

“Oh...that's good...” Louie muttered under his breath. “What about my brothers and Webby?”

Lena thought for a second. “Huey's would be a nice and simple rectangle and in a nice shade of red, no legs or anything, basically a box. However, the top of the ottoman can lift up and he can store all his nerd stuff in there. Simple, but useful. Dewey's would have a sky blue cushion with fancy embroidery on it and it would rest on a base with legs made out of mahogany wood. Something that looks like he could have gotten it on a trip around the world. Webby's would probably be similar to both of theirs. She'd want it to look nice and elegant like Dewey's, but just as useful as Huey's. Maybe it would be a big blocky one with legs and a fancy wooden curve along the bottom. It'd be a dark purple, you know the shade that royalty wear, and have fancy carvings on the curves. It can open and she can store all her spell books and secrets in it...”

Louie's eyes widened. “You should be on this show.”

Lena blushed and ducked down. “I-I'll pass...” She whispered

Louie smirked. “You're pretty good at figuring out what we'd like.”

“It's called reading people and you have to do it often when you live on the streets,” she said with a shrug.

Louie nodded his head and turned back to the show. “I'm sorry I brought that up,” he said.

Lena glanced up at him. “You didn't mean to, it's fine. Also, technically I was the one who brought it up,” she said.

They sat there in silence as a new episode started. Soon Lena shifted slightly and looked around. “Got any loose paper?” She asked.

Louie looked at her. “How come?” He asked.

“I wanna draw the ottomans...” she muttered.

Louie laughed. “Hey, that actually sounds like fun!” He got up off the couch. “I'll go grab some paper. I'll bring down some pencils and colored pencils too,” he said. He left the room.

Lena sat there in silence for a few minutes, but it wasn't too long before Louie came back and passed a few pieces of paper over and a pencil. He sat down and placed the bag of colored pencils between them.

They started drawing, each drawing their own version of Louie's ottoman. Louie's had the dollar signs all over the fabric and Lena's looked exactly how she had described it to him. Louie had to agree that Lena's looked more elegant but his looked more tacky and exactly the amount of chaotic that he liked from the show.

Then they moved on to Lena's. Lena drew her's and colored it a nice shade of maroon and then colored the small legs and base on it a dark brown. She glanced over at Louie's that was bright pink.

“Why is it bright pink?”

“To match your hair...”

“It's suppose to match the room I'd put it in, not my hair...”

“Chaos...”

“What if I re-dye my hair to a neon orange?”

“You get them to re-fabric your ottoman? Duh,” Louie said with a shrug.

Lena laughed. “You're awful!”

Louie motioned to the show. “Everyone on here is rich, they have the money to do it!”

Lena shook her head. “Alright...let's continue...”

They continued on, laughing the entire time. First they did Huey, then Dewey, and then Webby. Lena's didn't stray to far from what she had described earlier, though Louie's did. Huey's was designed to incorporate all the colors off of the Junior Woodchuck Guide Book and had a special pouch just for the book. Dewey's looked like it had a map of the world on it and Louie had drawn that if you lifted up the cushion, you could find a hidden marker so Dewey could mark off everywhere that he'd been, and Webby's was pink and purple striped and could only be opened if she figured out a complicated puzzle that was made out of wooden blocks on the front.

“Wow, those are all so extra,” Lena said.

“Yeah, well yours look too professional!” Louie said.

“Webby would love the puzzle on your ottoman,” Lena commented as she pointed to it.

“Huey would use yours forever!”

“I bet Dewey would prefer yours over mine! It's got a map where he could keep track of all his treasure!”

“Dude, I prefer your version of mine though. It looks like it was made for a king!”

They were laying on the couch giggling when Webby walked in. “Hi guys!” She said. She looked around. “Have you been watching Ottoman Empire all day?”

They both nodded. “Webby come look at our drawings!” Lena said.

“Yeah! You should see the ottoman Lena designed for me!” Louie said as he rolled over to point at the drawings on the floor.

Webby smiled and ran over. “No way! Did she design one for me too!”

“Yeah! She designed one for all of us! And then I designed some too!” He started going over each drawing and what his could do.

Lena soon reached over and started explaining hers too. She beamed when Webby smiled and complimented her on her drawings.

Afterwards, Webby dragged the two of them out to go play with her and get some fresh air. When Dewey and Huey came home they all gathered around the drawings as Louie and Lena once again explained their designs.

Lena couldn't help the smile when they told her that her designs were cool.

~

Whenever Webby explained the adventures she went on with Scrooge they had always sounded dangerous, but Lena always expected that she was over exaggerating and letting her imagination run wild.

Lena had decided to go with them on an adventure when Scrooge offered, just to be able to say to say that she'd gone on one. Also, she was kinda curious of what the adventures were like. Before they would come home tired, but chattering excitedly about what had happened.

This was the first adventure since she got her physical form back. Scrooge had wanted her be able to spend time with Webby and the boys and get used to everything that being physical brought again.

They were exploring and hiking up the side of a mountain that was named something complicated enough that Lena did even try remembering it. Supposedly, there were caves at the top that hid some sort of ancient hidden treasure. Scrooge was leading the small group, with Webby right behind him. Louie was behind Webby with Huey not to far behind him. Dewey and Lena were in the back, Dewey trying to keep her from getting too far behind.

“You're not tired are you?” Dewey asked from besides her.

She groaned. She was actually, she didn't think she'd ever hiked this much in her life. Well, except maybe once. However, she didn't want to cause the whole group to stop and dote on her. “I'm fine,” she said.

“You got your water bottle?” He asked.

Lena glanced back at her backpack. “Yep!” She looked over at him. “You know you can go catch up with your brothers right?”

Dewey shrugged. “Nah, you were looking kinda lonely all by yourself in the back...” he said.

Lena shrugged. “Whatever,” she said. She faced forward again.

Suddenly there was a shaking beneath them and the whole crew froze. Lena stumbled a bit, but Dewey caught her before she could face plant into the ground. There was a slight sound underneath where Dewey and Lena were standing. Suddenly the ground under them gave away and the two of them started sliding down the side of the mountain.

“LENA!” Lena could hear Webby cry out. Lena looked up just in time to see Webby look over the edge with Scrooge grabbing her wrist to keep her from falling down with them. Lena tried calling out for her but she couldn't make much of a sound besides a gasp.

It felt like forever before they stopped falling, but it couldn't have been longer than a minute or two. Lena and Dewey were laying on the ground. Lena felt a sharp pain on the back of her head and she didn't want to move.

“Lena?” Dewey asked. He moved to sit up and grunted in pain. He continued to sit up anyways. “Lena, are you okay?”

Lena hummed in response. She rolled over to look over at him. She opened her mouth to talk but then started coughing.

Dewey frowned. “I-I don't think you're supposed to move...” he muttered.

Lena lifted up one hand and reached for her water bottle. She carefully took a drink of it. “You did...” she muttered.

“You're bleeding! From your head! At most I have bruises and some scratches...maybe a twisted ankle...” he said.

Lena squinted her eyes and with the hand she used to grabbed the water bottle, she reached back to gently pat her head. “Oh.”

“OH?”

“I mean yeah, my head hurt but I thought it was just a concussion...” Lena muttered. She brought her hand back and her eyes widened. “Oh...” she muttered as she glanced at the blood on her hand. She went to sit up, but winced as her side erupted in pain. She whined and curled up into a ball.

Dewey scooted over to sit next to her. “Hey, Uncle Scrooge will come and get us...” he said.

“We're going to die...” Lena muttered. She focused on the bright glow that her bracelet was giving off. Webby must been in as much of a panic as she was.

“We're not going to die, Uncle Scrooge will make sure of that...” he said.

“He's not here...” Lena said.

“But he'll find us and make sure we don't die...” Dewey said.

Lena lifted her head up. “We literally slid down half a mountain that took all day to hike! We are going to die!” Her breathing quickened. “We're going to die and Webby is going to have to deal with loosing me all over again and your brothers are going to loose you and we're going to die here on the side of a mountain whose name I can't even remember...”

Dewey frowned. “Lena...you need to take a deep breath. Remember what Huey taught you. In, hold, out, hold...”

Lena nodded her head and followed along with Dewey as Dewey did the breathing. Slowly she calmed down. “Thanks...” she grumbled.

Dewey shrugged, but hissed in pain and rubbed at his shoulder. “No problem, you wanna focus on something else? Maybe play a game?”

“Sure, I wouldn't mind having some fun as I slowly die...” Lena grumbled.

“That's the spirit. Alright, I-Spy. I'll go first! I spy with my little eye something blue...”

Lena groaned. “The sky?”

“Nope!”

“Your shirt?”

“Nope!”

“This is the longest I've seen you sit still Little Boy Blue...”

“Just guess what I'm seeing!”

“You're backpack?”

“Nope!”

“If it's my shirt I'd like to point out that it's mint not blue...”

“Bingo...your turn!”

“I spy something grey...”

“Is it a rock?”

“Yep...”

This went on for a while longer. Dewey spying things like a red bird sitting on the tree near them or green moss growing on the tree two yards from them and Lena was spying things like the blue glow on her bracelet signaling that Webby was upset or the brown smudge on her sweater.

“I spy something purple,” Dewey said.

Lena groaned as Dewey started up yet another round but at least it was keeping her from panicking again. “Let me guess...my eyeshadow...”

“Nope!”

Lena looked around. There weren't any of the purple flowers that made her sneeze from the beginning of the hike, no purple rocks among the rubble, no purple anything...at least not in the direction she was looking. She looked over at Dewey, who was glancing up. Lena tilted her head so she could kind of see what he was looking at.

There standing on a ledge not too far away was Webby, her purple backpack on the ground beside her as she dug through it. She pulled out her grappling hook and handed it to Scrooge who was standing next to her.

“WEBBY!” Lena cried out excitedly. She nearly sat up before the pain came back.

Webby looked over. “STAY PUT UNCLE SCROOGE IS COMING TO GET YOU!”

Within the next half hour Scrooge had both of them back up to where the others were. Lena was on Webby's back, Webby's back pack now on Louie, and Dewey was leaned against Huey, who was asking him and Lena questions about their injuries. The second Huey had spotted her injury on her head, he had sat her down and bandaged it and then glanced at Scrooge and told him that their first stop should be a hospital.

“So now what?” Lena asked.

“Now we get down the mountain and back tae Launchpad and the plane so we can get ye two to the hospital...” Scrooge said.

“You're not going after the treasure?” Lena asked surpirsed.

“Not when yer hurt like that! Plus the path isn't safe right now, as ye two experienced first hand...” Scrooge replied.

Lena blinked. He was just going to stop because they had gotten hurt. They had started moving before she could ask anything else.

Later that week, she was curled up on her bed writing a poem in her journal when there was a knock on the door. “Come in!” She called out.

Dewey poked his head in. “Oh, good, you're okay...” he muttered.

Lena squinted at him. “What are you doing?” She asked.

Dewey limped in, his foot had been broken, not twisted. “Just checking in on you...how's your head?”

Lena smirked. “Good enough to write awful poetry...” she said as she tapped her pencil against her journal.

Dewey smiled and came to sit on her bed. “How bad are we talking?” He asked.

Lena laughed. “I tried to make up a word to rhyme with orange...”

“OH! THAT BAD!”

“Oh! It's not that bad Little Boy Blue!”

“I don't know that seems pretty bad...”

Lena gently pushed Dewey. “Go find your sheep or something...”

Dewey laughed. “That doesn't make any sense! I don't own sheep! Hey, you want to come watch a movie?”

Lena smirked and set her journal to the side. “Alright...whatever...” She stood up and helped Dewey stand. “Let's go...”

“Okay, but seriously, why sheep?” Dewey asked.

~

Lena and the kids walked through the front door on the manor. Lena's right arm and hand were scraped up and a bruise was forming around her eye.

“We're home!” Louie called out.

Donald walked in. “How was your-” He stopped as he caught sight of Lena. “What did you do!” He walked towards Lena, grabbed her wrist that wasn't hurt and dragged her into the dining room. He placed her on a chair and then left the room. Within minutes he came back with the big first aid kit in hand. He laid in on the table, opened it, and then started taking things out of it as he muttered to himself.

Lena looked over. “Uh, Hi to you too?”

Donald glanced over at her and narrowed his eyes before turning back to the first aid kit and grabbed something he had placed out and placed it back in the first aid kit. He then gathered up a small pile of packaged alcohol wipes and band-aids and sat down. “Hand,” he said.

Lena held out her injured hand and watched as Donald tore open an alcohol wipe and started patting it on her wounded knuckles. She flinched but didn't say anything. Soon enough, she watched him grab the band-aids and carefully place a few on her knuckles before bandaging it. “What's that for?” She asked.

“To keep the band-aids from falling off,” he said.

Lena raised an eyebrow. She was actually impressed that she could understand what he had said. When she first met him she hadn't really bothered, but now she understood about ninety percent of what he said, unless he was angry. “Okay...”

“Arm out straight...” Donald said.

Lena held her arm out straight and waited for him to start cleaning. However, when he placed the wipe on her elbow it stung. “Ouch!” Lena yelped.

“Hold still,” Donald muttered. He finished wiping it and then turned to look at the band-aids. “Bend your arm,” he said.

Lena did as she was told. “I could do this on my own you know...” she muttered.

Donald looked up at her and raised an eyebrow. “Head...” he said simply.

With Lena's free arm she patted the back on her head, she could feel a small bandage there. “Okay, so I forgot to wrap it up one night and almost terrified Webby. Doesn't mean I should have to sit here and be babied...”

“It's not babying. It's making sure you are safely bandaged up...” Donald carefully placed a large band-aid on her elbow. He motioned to her to move her arm and she reluctantly followed along, even if she did groan.

“I'm fine now...can I go?” Lena asked.

“What happened?” Donald asked.

Lena sat up straight. “What?”

“What did you do?”

Lena sighed. “Some older kids were picking on Webby and the boys so I fought them...” she said with a shrug.

Donald sighed and rested his head in his hand. “You can't just fight everyone who picks on your friends...”

“Well, what type of friend would I be if I didn't?”

“You could have gotten them out of the situation...”

“I did...I snuck up behind the leader of the group and hit him, which bought the four of them time to escape,” Lena pointed out.

“You didn't even try to go get an adult?”

“Most of the times adults don't listen...” Lena grumbled.

“I would have. Scrooge and Mrs. Beakley would have,” Donald pointed out.

“Yeah, but we were at Funzo's...not here at the manor...” Lena muttered.

Donald sighed. “Lena, if you had just gone to any adults that work there, I'm sure they would have stopped the fight. That's part of their job.”

“Why do you even care?” Lena asked a little more sharply than she intended.

“Because I don't like seeing any of my kids hurt and that includes you...” Donald stated.

Lena tensed up and froze. “What?”

“I don't like to see you hurt. You live here, you are my kid. I will do anything to keep you safe and I'm sure Scrooge, Mrs. Beakley, and even Duckworth would say the same...even if they don't always seem like they would.”

Lena sighed. “Fine...next time I'll go find an adult, but what happens if they don't take the matter in hand?” She asked.

Donald thought for a second. “Text me, I'll take care of any adult who doesn't stop my kids from getting hurt...”

“Does that include Scrooge?” Lena asked.

Donald glanced at her. “Any adult...”

Lena smiled small. She sat there on the chair and kicked her feet nervously. She let out a sigh. “Donald?” She asked.

Donald tilted his head. “Yeah?”

“Thanks...” she said.

Donald gently patted her head. “No problem kiddo.”

Lena made a face when he patted her head. “No...don't do that...”

“Do what?” Donald asked, pulling his hand away quick.

“Don't call me kiddo, I have an image to keep.”

Donald smirked and folded his arms. “Let's go,” he said as he motioned to the door.

Lena jumped up off the chair and quickly left the room, only to be tackled by Webby. “You're not in trouble are you?”

“Nah, he just wanted to put band-aids all over me...” Lena said. She laughed softly.

Louie looked up as Donald walked out of the kitchen, a ice pack in his hands. “Did Lena tell you about how she fought off a bully at Funzo's? Because it was pretty cool.”

“Yeah, until he pushed her down on the gravel...” Huey muttered.

“But you should have seen the way she jumped up to finish the job! If you think she looks bad, you should see the other guy!” Dewey said excitedly.

Donald handed Lena the ice pack. “That good?” He asked.

Lena smirked. “Never said all the blood on my knuckles was mine...”

Donald shook his head. “Find an adult next time.”

Lena laughed. “Yes Sir!”

~

They had laid down the rules. No dares that could get you hurt and no truths that could cause fights. It was just a nice, safe game of Truth and Dare held in Webby's room. And so far, it had been working.

Lena rolled the d4 Louie had snuck from Donald's game. “Okay, I rolled a three...” She pointed to Webby, then to Dewey, and then to Huey. “Alright, Little Red...ask me.,” she said.

Huey folded his arms. “Alright, Truth or Dare?”

Lena narrowed her eyes and thought for a second. “Truth,” she said.

Huey brought a hand up under his beak as he thought. “Okay, how about this. Since you lived in an abandoned amphitheater, do you like theater?”

Lena tensed up and her face felt hot. She brought her hands up to try to hide her blush.

“Come on you got to answer it!” Dewey called out.

Lena whined but then nodded. “Yeah...yeah I like theater. Musicals are fun...” she said quickly.

She then passed the dice over to Webby, but all too quickly it was her turn again. She rolled the dice and internally screamed when it landed on a four. “Alright Green Knight...go ahead,” she muttered.

Louie had a wicked smile. “Truth or Dare?”

“Dare...why not. My pride is already bruised...”

“I dare you to sing a Broadway song,” Louie said.

Lena took a deep breath. “I hate you...” she muttered. She stood up and stretched. “Alright, give me a second as I try to remember one...”

“I believe in you!” Webby cheered.

Lena smiled small. She looked around and walked over to the opposite side of the room, right in front of the McDuck family board. She shook out her hands and rocked on her feet. “I haven't sung in a long time, if it sucks you now know why....” she said. She took another deep breath before she started.

The first few lines started off shaky, her arms coming up to wrap around herself nervously.

“What if when he sees me, I like him and he knows it? What if he opens up a door and I can't close it? What happens then?”

As she started going though she started to feel confident and her arms reach up to grab at her shoulders in a hugging type motion.

“If when he holds me, my heart is set in motion?”

She brought her hands up to her head to run through her bangs.

“I'm not prepared for that...I'm scared of breaking open!”

Her arms come down to rest in front of her chest as she held tightly to her friendship bracelet.

“But still I can't help from hoping to find...”

She glanced over at Webby as her arms slowly dropped.

“Someone to talk to, who likes the way I am...”

She quickly looked away and took a stance with her feet shoulder length apart and brought her hands to press against her chest.

“Someone who when he sees me, wants to again!”

After cutting off the last note, she could hear hands clapping. She shook herself back to the present and blushed when she saw all four of them applauding her. She hid her face in the hoodie she was wearing. “Oh! No don't do that! You'll catch all their attention if we haven't already!”

“When Louie asked for a Broadway song I was not expecting a Broadway performance!” Dewey said.

“Stop!” Lena whined.

“You should try out for the local theater troupe!” Huey said.

“No...”

“Lena wins! No more Truth or Dare! No one can beat that” Louie announced.

“...guys...”

“That was so good! You're not only a talented poet but you can also act and sing! Is there anything you can't do!” Webby cooed.

Lena uncovered her bright red face. “Apparently disappear...” she mumbled.

There was a knock on the door. “I thought I said no games that involved fighting,” Mrs. Beakley said.

“Sorry Granny!” Webby called out.

“No fighting here. Just some acting,” Louie announced.

“Alright, just remember to keep it down a little,” Mrs. Beakley said.

“Will do!” Dewey called out.

“Sorry,” Huey said.

“It's fine, Scrooge's interview will be over in about a half hour. Afterwords I'll make you something special...like some pancakes,” she said.

“Thanks Mrs. Beakley,” Lena said.

“You're welcome. Also, your singing sounded lovely...” After that, they could hear her footsteps leave down the hall.

Lena stood there stuttering. “Wha-but...come on!” She walked back to the circle and sat down, her face slowly fading from red.

“What are you so embarrassed about? You were good!” Dewey asked.

Lena shrugged. “She didn't like a lot of my interests. She made fun of a lot of my poetry. She told me that everything I touch would just die when I grew plants. She hated my drawings. She caught me singing once, said I sounded like a stray cat...”

“She was rude and mean anyways so her opinion doesn't count,” Webby said before pulling Lena into a hug. “You've got us now and we'll support you in anything you try!”

Louie smiled. “Yeah, if they can support me with all my cons, they'll definitely support you with your musical theater dreams...”

Lena ducked her head. “Shush...” she muttered.

Dewey, Huey, and Louie all smirked before Dewey picked up the dice.

“Alright Webby, you're turn!”

~

Some days Lena wanted to be left alone. Sometimes she had an awful night and just wanted to sleep all day. Sometimes she would just feel like everything was too loud or too bright and she'd go hide in a dark, quiet room and count random things. Some days, like today though, it was due to the little thoughts in her head.

The thoughts that sounded an awful lot like Magica. The thoughts that were ingrained due to listening to someone tell her that she was useless for multiple years. The thoughts that still tried to convince her that Scrooge really didn't want her here and that she didn't belong. The thoughts that Lena had been getting better at ignoring, but some days just couldn't.

Lena had told Webby that today was going to be one of those hide in her rooms days. Webby had nodded her head and ran off to go play with the boys. Now Lena was in her room laying on her bed with it's curtains closed on all the sides she could untie them from the posts. She'd been like that for at least an hour.

There was a soft knock on the door. “Lena, have ye eaten?” Scrooge said from the other side of the door.

“No...” Lena called out.

“Mrs. Beakley made cookies, would ye like some? I've got two in my hand...”

“Door's unlocked...” Lena said.

She could hear the door being opened as Scrooge walked in. She rolled over so instead of facing the wall, she saw him part the curtains. He held out a cookie. “I'm not sure if the bed's the best place ta eat this. Want me ta scoot yer cushion over?”

Lena shrugged and watched as Scrooge went ahead to scoot her cushion over. She couldn't figure out if it had originally been a footrest or something else before she dragged it to her hideout. It, the table, and the chest were some of the few things in decent enough condition to be brought back over to the manor.

The second Scrooge placed it besides her bed, she scooted over onto it. She reached up and took the cookie when he offered it to her.

“Want me ta leave?” He asked.

Lena sighed. “I don't care, I guess talking to you wouldn't be too bad...” she muttered.

Scrooge took the small desk chair that was seated by the desk he had found for her. He watched as she took a bite of the cookie. “Now what has gotten ye inta this little funk?” He asked.

Lena sighed. “The voice in my head is being a jerk again and it doesn't help that it sounds like Her...” she said. She munched on the cookie.

Scrooge nodded his head. “Ignoring it hasn't worked?”

Lena shook her head. “Nope,”

Scrooge tilted his head. “You're a poet, have ye tried writing about it?”

“Tried writing poems today. Voice is telling me they suck...”

Scrooge sighed. “Have ye tried doing a list?”

She looked up and tilted her head. “What?”

Scrooge smiled. “Ye write down something the little voice in yer head says and then write down every reason it's a lie...”

She looked down at her half eaten cookie. “I haven't tried that yet...”

Scrooge shrugged. “Might give it a try.” He bit into his cookie. “Oh! Beakley really did great with this batch...” he muttered.

Lena smiled small. “Yeah, they are pretty great.”

They sat there in silence as they finished off their cookies. Scrooge stood up and glanced at Lena. “The kids might have a movie night tonight if you're up to it. I'll send Webby yer way when they start...” he said.

Lena nodded her head. “Alright,” she said.

Scrooge offered a gentle smile. “You try out the idea I gave ye. It might help...” he said.

Lena nodded her head again. “Yeah,”

With that Scrooge left, shutting the door behind him. Lena took a deep breath and walked over to her desk where her journal was currently. She spun a bit in the chair before opening it up and trying out what Scrooge said.

_Voice says: No one wants you here_

_Reasons wrong: Webby, literally everything she does. Dewey asks me what I want to play. Huey checks to see if I'm okay after nasty falls. Louie invites me to watch marathons of Ottoman Empire, even if I just play on my phone the entire time. Donald calls me 'one of his kids'. Beakley nor Duckworth have kicked me out. Scrooge asks how my day was._

_Voice says: You're dangerous._

_Reasons wrong: I've stood up for the boys. No one has kicked me out. I'm aloud to practice my magic to get better. Webby seems to think I'm safe. Donald isn't making the boys avoid me. Mrs. Beakley hasn't tried to hurt me, so there's that too._

_Voice says: Everyone is faking it._

_Reasons wrong: This is literally Webby we're talking about, the girl can't hide the smile she wears around me in a dark room. Dewey has no problem speaking his mind. Nor does Louie come to think of it. Huey seems pretty chill. Doubt Scrooge would fake something if it meant that the boys could possibly be in trouble with me around. Mrs. Beakley faking it? HA!_

Lena noticed that the voice was slowly shutting up as she wrote. She seemed much more relaxed than she had been earlier. She let out a sigh. Maybe she should go to Scrooge for help more often. She wasn't quite ready to go out and face people, but maybe after a nap she would. She moved to lay down on her bed. Soon she was fast asleep.

She woke up to a knock. “Door's opened,” she called out as she sat up. She parted the curtains around her bed to see Webby peeked her head in.

“Hi, Scrooge said to see if you wanted to come watch movies with us...” she said.

Lena smiled small and rubbed at her eye. “Yeah, just a second. Let me look like I didn't just wake up from a nap...”

Webby frowned. “Oh! I'm sorry!”

Lena waved dismissively. “Nah, don't worry about it...” She hopped off her bed, walked over to her standing mirror and pulled on her shirt to make it look straight. She quickly ran her hand through her bangs and then turned to Webby. “Let's go!”

Wwebby smiled and took Lena's hand. “So, what movie do you wanna watch?”

~

Both girls laid on the floor of Lena's room. They held hands on the side with the bracelets and their other hands were resting on their chests. Their held hands were glowing blue and above them a couple of Webby's stuffed animals floated in the air, also glowing blue.

“Can't believe Scrooge is still letting us use magic...” Lena muttered.

“You heard him, he trusts us...” Webby said.

“Why?” The little bunny rabbit Lena was in charge of did a flip.

“He knows we wouldn't use it for bad...” Webby's little doll that looked a lot like her did a loop de loop around Lena's.

“He knows YOU wouldn't use it for bad. You've proven that countless times...”

“You wouldn't use it for bad either...”

“I have in the past...”

“No you didn't, She did. You're different. You're magic is different. How many times have you saved me?” Webby said. She titled her head to look at Lena. “I can name at least twice while you were a shadow and multiple times since I've brought you back. Also, can I say Money Shark.”

Lena groaned and brought her hands up to her face, causing the magic to be broken and the stuffed animals to fall. “Don't bring that up...”

Webby smiled. “See! When you're in charge of how you use your magic, you do good!”

Lena glanced over at Webby. “Why do you always see the good in me?”

Webby sat up and shrugged. “Because you're my best friend,” Webby said.

Lena sat up and smiled. She leaned over to Webby and gave her a hug. “You're the best you know that...”

Webby laughed and hugged Lena back. “No...you are...”

Lena giggled at the childish response. “No, you.”

Webby pushed Lena over while she still hugged her. “No!”

Lena laughed as she gently hit the floor. “Yes!”

The two girls laid there giggling. Slowly they calmed down. Webby booped Lena's beak with her finger. “Well, what do you want to do now?” Webby asked.

Lena shrugged. “I don't know. How much energy did you use?”

Webby thought for a moment. “Not too much. It's been getting easier, especially since you're around...” she said.

Lena glanced over at their bracelets and smiled. “Yeah...our magic feels nicer...” she said.

Webby smiled. “See, good!”

Lena laughed softly. “None of you are going to let me think I'm bad ever again are you?”

Webby sat up and helped Lena back up. “Not if we can help it! You're part of this family. We care about you...” Webby said.

Lena smiled. “I think I'm starting to get used to this whole family thing. Sorry if it's taking me a while...”

Webby shrugged. “That's okay, we'll help you every step of the way...”

Lena rubbed the back of her head. “I-I think I'd like that...”

Webby stood up and helped Lena up. “We should go see what the boys are up to! Maybe we could convince them to play a game of hackey sack!”

Lena nodded her head. “No bruises?”

Webby shrugged. “I can certainly try!” She led Lena out of the room and down the hall. “GUYS!”

“In the TV room!” Dewey called out.

The girls ran towards where the guys were and slid into the doorway. Webby posing with her hands on her hips and Lena forward with her hands on her knees as she caught her breath.

“Nice,” Louie commented.

“Do you three wanna play hackey sack?” Webby asked.

The three boys looked at each other before shrugging. “Sure,” Dewey said.

The five kids ran outside to begin playing. Webby was still learning how hard to kick the hackey sack so that others could play without getting bruised, but none of the boys nor Lena cared too much. It honestly felt nice to spend some time together and play around in the sun. Sure Donald would probably get on their case for not wearing sunscreen or Beakley might scold them for kicking it too hard and into the garden, but that's what family did.

And Lena couldn't be more pleased with the family she had.

~

_She stood in the center of the amphitheater, Webby hiding behind her. Magica stood in front, her staff pointing towards them. “How dare you! You dare disobey me!”_

_Lena took a deep breath. “I am free of you now, Magica! You will not hurt my friends!”_

_Magica growled and started chanting a spell. Her staff started to glow purple._

_Lena grabbed Webby's hand. “That spell won't work on me! I lived my whole life in your shadow but I am my own person now!”_

_The second Lena had said those words, the magic at the top of Magica's staff died out. Magica glanced at the staff and then at Lena, her eyes wide. “What! What did you do?”_

_Lena stepped forward. “I've got a family who will fight for me!”_

_Magica glared at her. “Don't think that I'm through with you.” With that she disappeared in a puff of smoke._

Lena woke up to the sun beating down on her face. She saw Webby sleeping in her bed besides her, they had had a sleepover in Lena's room. Lena couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as she looked over Webby's peaceful smile. She then glanced around the room, her Lavender was doing great, her Thyme was on her desk basking in the sunlight, and she reminded herself that the Aloe Vera would need watering that day. She caught sight of the sticky notes on her desk giving her tips on what to do in the middle of a panic given to her by Huey. She looked across the way and smiled as her eyes fell on the drawings of ottomans she drew with Louie, and a drawing of a yeti that Dewey drew while he was stuck on the couch due to his broken leg. She spotted her and Webby's dart guns from the night before on the table besides a playbill of a musical Scrooge had taken the family out to see. She glanced back over to the desk to see a jar full of writing prompts Scrooge had found and the book on self defense that Donald had bought her.

Lena brought her hands up above her head and started playing with her bracelet.

Yeah, she had an amazing family.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Several of the quotes from the Nightmares/Dreams are from the Ducktales '87 episode: Magica's Shadow War. 
> 
> DID YOU KNOW: Kimiko Glenn, Lena's voice actress, also played Dawn in Waitress for a while? (Also, the song Lena sings is When He Sees Me from Waitress...which is sung by Dawn...)
> 
> Sorry this got so long...it just...did?


End file.
